Into The New World
by nerdyghostclub
Summary: When a small experiment provides big results, the existence of PK is acknowledged throughout the world, but science and society don't have the same standards for acceptance. Psychic powers are now being zoomed in upon and scrutinized and this has dangerous results for those who possess them.
1. Prologue

As big of an event as this was for its attendees, the hall was rather stark. The crowd size greatly underrepresented how important this night would turn out to be. What may have seemed like a small pebble dropped in a lake would be sending out ripples for decades to come. It was something similar to the case of the boy who cried wolf. While the scientist behind this experiment himself was mostly unheard of so far, his claims were nothing new, and had always turned out unfounded in the past. This being the case, most of those who attended were already involved in the research of parapsychology.

The affair was being held at a hotel in Saint Petersburg, Russia. For convenience, many of the conference's guests chose to stay there as well, including renowned author and psychic, Dr. Oliver Davis.

Never a big fan of crowds, it was surprising how many parties Oliver had managed to entertain in the past. Before the presentation, his father had decided they should come down and socialise. It was only a small gathering, but the group was still enough to overwhelm. Luckily, these people weren't here for the great Dr. Davis, so he was able to slip out rather easily once Martin's back was turned. He found himself wandering the halls of the building, familiarizing himself with the location of the rest of the hotel's amenities. Eventually he started making his way back upstairs, thinking up an excuse to give when he finally reunited with his father. He didn't get very far however, before running into a young woman leaning over the rail and looking down towards the lobby.

Hearing footsteps stop behind her, the woman turned around, mumbling in a language Oliver was unfamiliar with. She was young, about his age, with brown skin and dark hair pulled back in a tight ponytail. She was wearing a cream dress under a black blazer, her hands in the pockets. She looked up at him, displeased. However, it seemed she was expecting someone else, as her expression changed to shock, then embarrassment. She took a moment to look over the individual in front of her before shifting so there was more space between them, then she spoke.

"I'm sorry, I thought you were here to drag me back to the conference downstairs," she confessed, through a strong accent.

 _So she was another guest._ He forced himself to give her a polite smile.

"Honestly, I'm avoiding it as well."

"Oh, not a fan of the chit chat?"

"I'm here for the science."

The girl cocked her head.

"Are you here to discredit me?"

This threw him off balance.

"Are you part of Dr. Ismailov's team?"

At that, she smiled shortly.

"I'm his successful subject, my name's Nona Mardonova."

She reached out her hand to shake, but Oliver didn't even notice, distracted by her reveal. He continued.

"I'm not necessarily here to discredit you. Actually, it seems your supervisor took inspiration from my methods for his experiment. I'm impressed by the results, as long as they're accurate."

Nona still hadn't retracted her hand, though her discomfort now was obvious, so he conceded and begrudgingly shook it.

"Oliver Davis."

Her face lit up.

"Oh! Dr. Ismailov spoke of your work a lot, although I did not imagine you would be so young."

"The doctorate's only honorary."

"I see..."

Nona voice trailed off.

"You know, I never really believed in any of this stuff before, I guess that's why he chose me, right? But now..."

"Now you're bound to become a symbol, an icon, a figure of the community."

"Community, huh? A group I'd been calling liars and crazy my whole life, including you."

Oliver's eyes softened and he put on a small smile before admitting, "I may be a bit crazy," which garnered a chuckle from Nona. It was a short moment though, and soon she was back to staring blank-faced over the rail. After about a minute, she broke the silence once again with her own confession.

"Honestly, I'm a little bit scared. I have this ability that... for all this time I just- never knew about. I wasn't even trying at first. What more is there I don't know about myself? I'm not doubting anymore, I'm just... afraid."

When she turned back around, Oliver's face had gone cold again.

"I worry that might be the general public's reaction as well."

"What am I supposed to do when I can't even trust myself anymore?"

"All you did was move a ball in a tube, right? You're not scary. It's me they should be afraid of."

She frowned.

"The fifty kilogram aluminum block was you, right? I never saw the experiment footage. Is the story real?"

Seeming to ignore her, he stepped forward to lean over the rail himself. The lobby was still bustling, but more people were moving into the conference room off to the side and taking their seats. It was almost time for the two of them to make their own way back downstairs. He took a deep breath as his fingertips found the edge of the rail and began tapping. 1, 2, 3-

"Dr. Davis?"

Stop.

"The story's true, but that was years ago. It's not likely to happen again anytime soon."

Breathe in.

"Do you scare yourself, too?"

Breathe out.

"We should get going. It's about time."


	2. Chapter 1

Mai was running late for work again, as always. It wasn't her fault, really, usually. Naru told her to start exactly on the hour, and unless she left school early, the trains just wouldn't allow for that. _Imagine I did that though_ , she thought, _skipped class and walked into the office on time for once_. Her boss wouldn't let her live it down. "Do you want to be stupid?" he'd ask, or he'd make some other rude comment. Now, if she were honest with herself, she knew she had little right to complain, as it wasn't like he paid her any less for her tardiness. He was a good boss, and she was well-compensated for her work, (not that she'd ever admit to this aloud, especially not in front of the great narcissist himself. ) All she actually had to suffer through was teasing from the other people who flowed in and out of the office during the day, the riffraff with too much free time. She almost wanted to yell at them, insisting that SPR was not a coffee shop in the very same way Naru used to remind them. Just as she was thinking about telling everyone "this is a place of business, we do serious research here, please go socialize elsewhere," she opened the office door to find none other than her two favorite coworkers, arm-wrestling on the coffee table. Ah, yes, serious research again.

* * *

"So, children, what were we fighting about, exactly?"

Mai was, of course, referring to the arm-wrestling match which had turned into a full-on brawl just moments after she had stepped inside the office. She almost thought she had let the door slam closed, but no, the crash she heard was just Taka pushing the table aside and knocking Yasuhara to the floor. The guilty parties exchanged an embarrassed glance before Taka turned back towards Mai to explain.

"It was a battle for Norio's heart."

"It's like she takes my flirting seriously."

"It started off as a joke, but then he cheated."

"I didn't cheat."

"You moved your arm off the table."

 _Oi, what would Monk think if he were here? He... might find it hilarious, actually._

"Now Taka, what happened to respecting your elders?"

"It was a respectful duel, Mai."

"You flipped the table on me!"

"You cheated!"

If she left these two alone they could bicker about this all day, or worse, start another fight. Mai quickly realised she actually quite liked the furniture they currently had in the office, and she didn't want to see any of it broken. She had to be careful.

"Soooo, Yuuko~, what are you doing in the office anyway? I thought you had exams to prepare for."

 _A skillful change of topic, was that not?_

"Oh, why Mai? Are you not happy to see me?"

"Well, of course I am, I have been nothing but blessed by this visit from my superior Takahashi."

The so-esteemed miss Takahashi chose that moment to let out a crude farting noise as a reminder that she was, truly, the best, earning praise from her two fellow part-timers.

"Alright, so, yeah, but Chiaki texted me this morning and asked me to come in, and, the knight in shining armor that I am, I could never refuse a damsel in distress."

Yasuhara let out a chuckle.

"Should we battle for Kasai's heart too now?"

"You wouldn't even stand a chance. Don't test me, you dirty old man."

Yasuhara raised his arms in surrender. They had reached a peace.

"So what did she want you to come in for, and where is she, by the way?"

Taka pushed a small strand of hair behind her ear and leaned back on the office sofa.

"Ah, that, I'm not actually sure. I only got here a short while ago. Is she in with Lin?"

She pointed that question at Yasuhara.

"She was this morning, so unless she decided to abandon you while I went out for lunch I'd assume she still is."

"Chiaki would never abandon me."

"Then she must still be with Lin."

"How do we know for sure? Do we knock? Has anyone here ever knocked on Lin's door?"

Mai shivered.

"Never."

"That would be a no here as well."

"He can't be that scary. Go on Mai, knock."

"Ehh? Why me?"

"You've been here longest. If there's any one of us he tolerates, it would be you."

"She's right, Taniyama."

"You- you too, Yasuhara?"

"It's best you just get it over with, go, knock. Do it quickly. Do it now."

His glasses glinted.

"We can just wait."

"No, we can't."

"Why not?"

"Respect your elders, Taniyama."

Mai hung her head in defeat. Those two, straight from fighting each other to ganging up on her, how in the world did they do it? Just as she was beginning to accept her terrible fate at the hands of her seniors, the door to Lin's office opened, and out walked the boss. She jumped up. She was saved.

"Good afternoon, Naru."

He paid little attention to her greeting, as he was focused on a book in his hands. Without removing his eyes from the page, he began to say her name, but she interrupted.

"Tea, right? Not a problem, but first, just wondering, is Chiaki in there?"

At this he did look up, blink, and sigh before leaning his head back through the door.

"Kasai, my employees seek an audience with you."

Mai smiled.

"Tea."

"Yes, boss!"

As he retired back into his own office and Kasai shuffled out of Lin's, Mai moved to the kitchenette to leaf through their variety of teas. She made a selection for Naru and set some water to boil before seating herself next to Taka on the sofa. Kasai was in the middle of speaking.

"-that they'd finally have to accept it. That's… I don't know."

"I mean, that's a pretty big step."

"Yeah, but, I bent a key in front of the entire school and it didn't accomplish anything."

Mai nudged the girl beside her.

"Hey, what did I miss?"

Taka blinked at her and turned to face Kasai again.

"Well, Chiaki heard something about PK on the news this morning, right?"

"They demonstrated it, in a lab setting."

There was a sparkle in her eye as she looked at Mai.

"Have they not done that before?"

"No, not like this. I mean, I asked boss about it. He said they've never taken sufficient enough care to isolate the subjects before. Up until now the experiments have been unrepeatable, with no proof of a lack of outside influence being the real cause of any PK phenomena. This doctor took extra care though, to make the results universally acceptable, rather than only interesting to those who already believe. The video's supposed to have been publically released as well, though I haven't seen it yet."

"Ooh, so it's a big deal then. Naru knew about it already?"

"He said there was a conference last month that he attended where they discussed the early results."

"Why wouldn't he mention something that big?"

"It's because he's Naru," Yasuhara chimed in with a smile.

 _Ah, of course he wouldn't mention it. Naru is Naru, after all._

Kasai continued to share her excitement, whilst reflecting back on the events of her senior year of high school. The three of them listened intently. It had been a while since they'd all met, during the case at her and Taka's school, though Yasuhara didn't join the group until a bit later, replacing Taka at the office while Naru was in England and Madoka was running the place. It was rare for the four of them to be together, but nice. The irregulars who filled up the office sometimes were great, they were like family, but only Masako was Mai's age. She had a special bond with those involved with SPR that she couldn't share with her school friends, and while Kasai may not be an employee, Naru had been the one to invite her to take free lessons under Lin. It must have meant a lot to her after all that happened with Ubusuna. In the past year, she had opened up a lot, and she was back to smiling often. It warmed Mai's heart to see.

After some time, the conversation veered off onto other topics, with Mai and Yasuhara leaving the sitting area to return to doing their actual jobs. The water had boiled, and after the tea was done brewing, she knocked on Naru's office door. Once invited in she saw he had been staring out the window. She almost asked if something was on his mind, but decided against it, realizing he was unlikely to share with her even if there was. She left the cup and saucer on the corner of his desk, and was pleasantly surprised to hear a "Thank you," on her way out.

She sat down at her own desk after handing out drinks to her friends, stretching her arms and legs out. Yasuhara said he would finish going over the final report for their latest case before he left for home; it had been a simple case, without any spirits, so Mai took out her homework to start on. She might as well get something done, even if she was tempted to hop back into the conversation between Taka and Kasai. For some reason though, she found it hard to focus. Something she couldn't identify felt off. She tried to just brush it off, but she couldn't. She was barely through her English by the time someone made their way into the office.

"Hey, did you all hear the news?"

It was Takigawa. It turned out he was talking about the same thing Kasai had been, and he was insistent on dragging Lin and Naru out of their offices to discuss it.

 _No less should be expected from Oliver Davis' number one fan._

Mai chuckled to herself, but something still felt off, and she caught herself staring into space while preparing Monk's regular iced coffee. She moved to listening in on the conversation taking place next door. Monk seemed thrilled, even Lin had a lot to say, but Naru was uncharacteristically silent. Normally his quietness would be in character, but he always had something to say when they were discussing the actual science of parapsychology. It was just the four of them in the office now. Kasai and Taka had departed before Monk's arrival to grab dinner, and Yasuhara had left shortly after them. Mai felt out of place. She had learned a lot in the almost two years of working with SPR, but she was still the least knowledgeable in this group. Apparently John was on his way to join the conversation. She would just have to sit quietly doing her homework, and try to avoid saying anything silly that Naru could call her out on. It was too much work, avoiding letting herself be embarrassed by him.

She brought out a tray with Monk's iced coffee and more tea for Naru and Lin. They might have said something to her, but she was too distracted by the continuing sinking feeling in her gut. Something _was_ off, and it was bigger than she could even imagine.


	3. Chapter 2

The news item that Takigawa and Kasai had latched onto was just one of many to come. As the initial report was translated from Azerbaijani into not just English, but several European and Asian languages, more scientists from around the world were taking interest in the outcome and what directions it might be taking modern science in. Mai could hear her fellow students whispering about it before class. It seemed everyone was fascinated with the topic. Some found the claims ridiculous, others professed that they'd known all along, including one girl who Mai had gotten to know in a rather personal way some time almost two years ago. She was also a topic of the gossip.

"Hey hey, is that stuff about psychic powers true?"

"-does that mean Kuroda's for real?"

"-but I always found her weird."

"I mean that experiment was about moving things with your mind, not ghosts, right? So-"

"Is there a difference?"

"-I don't know, it's all pretty weird-"

 _They should be embarrassed,_ she thought, for talking about another student behind her back, for not even knowing what they're talking about. _There's a pretty big difference between ESP and PK, first off, but Naru did say he thought Kuroda had latent psychokinetic abilities as well._

At least they weren't in the same class as her _. Would Kuroda be upset though, or would she just tell them off?_ Mai thought she had grown more timid and less defensive, but she didn't know her that well. She could still be perfectly capable of protecting herself. Despite that, Mai found herself ready to speak up. She was only prevented from doing so by her teacher walking through the door and beginning the day's lesson.

The lesson did not get very far, however. It seemed no one paid any attention during class; they were all distracted. Even the teachers seemed to be unfocused. It was unusual, but to be expected. Their world was being turned upside down. Something previously considered only fantasy was becoming reality. For Mai, it wasn't that big of a deal; the paranormal was her normal, so as everyone ignored her teacher's words and continued whispering amongst themselves, she just looked out the window until school let out.

* * *

There were still some strong-willed skeptics who held onto their disbelief, but by this point, most of the world was accepting PK as something real. People, mostly children, were coming out and sharing their abilities in a repeat of the Gellerini phenomena, only many times larger. There were less deniers, and social media was there to amplify everything. Spoon benders were becoming viral sensations, with some of the more popular videos surpassing even the original spark, Nona Mardanova's demonstration, in views. Psychics were becoming celebrities, and rumors were flying about England's Oliver Davis, a psychic supposedly stronger than any others who had so far displayed their abilities to the public. The aluminum block experiment's footage was leaked at some point, and his young age and handsome face only furthered his popularity, something that the boy himself was not a fan of. He did not wish to become a spectacle, only to pursue his research quitely, and this sabotaged that one goal. His parents had reason to worry, too, and Lin was put on high alert, even if his main function as a bodyguard up until now had been protecting Naru from himself.

Naoko Kuroda had never bothered to experiment with PK before, simply accepting that it was a latent ability she had no interest in, until now. Now, she showed off for her classmates, moving small objects with the power of her mind, basking in the attention. She wasn't the most skilled, but the audience wasn't full of critics, just wide eyes captivated by whatever was thrown at them. Chiaki Kasai followed the phenomena online, but didn't participate herself. She'd had enough focus on her abilities for a lifetime. It was almost a shame, as her lessons with Lin over the many months since had truly helped her harness her strength, and she was capable of so much more these days. She could have gained quite a following herself.

The focus was on telekinesis, but the masses were also interested in ESP, expecting it to be the next mystery proven real. It had apparently had a part in the experiment design, even if nothing as conclusive could be drawn about it. During this time, Masako Hara's show had a major increase in views. Her aunt and manager was thoroughly excited, congratulating Masako on her own thriving fame, encouraging her to accept more invitations. News networks, foreign psychic research programs, and talk shows were all reaching out to her, begging for her presence during filming. It was all a bit overwhelming, but she went along with it. Even Shibuya Psychic Research was getting more visits, though they were all pretty much misdirected, with teenagers coming in to ask about PK demonstrations, or if they could determine if one was legitimate or faked. Mai or Yasuhara would politely explain that was not what they were there for, while the boss would loudly exhale, exhausted.

* * *

One night, Oliver received a phone call from England while at the hotel.

"Hello."

"Hello, Oliver."

"Martin, good afternoon."

"You should give your mother a call some time, she misses you."

Martin Davis had not called his son to simply lecture him on keeping in better touch with his parents, but it was hard to avoid throwing a little reminder in. The Society of Psychical Research had not yet found the source of the leak of the footage of Oliver's famous demonstration, and he had wanted to apologize. Maybe he also wanted to check up on his son a little; he could admit that. They had enough to discuss: the apartments Oliver was supposed to be looking into, more developments surrounding Dr. Ismailov's study, how Shibuya Psychic Research was faring, that Martin didn't have to worry about running out of reasons to talk to him. He had returned home for only two months, after almost two years, and now he was back in Japan again. It was for the best, it was where he was happy, or at least content. It was all they wanted for him, so they couldn't be selfish and wish him home, no matter how much they missed him, no matter how empty the house felt with two abandoned bedrooms. They had to accept it, and so, Martin treasured this time, discussing business and science, hearing a voice so many miles away from him.

"I will, you don't have to worry. How are things with the Society?"

Professional conversations were better than silence, and it would be silly to expect personal correspondence with Oliver.

"We haven't found the leak yet, but a lot of white crows have been perching themselves on our wires lately."

"It seems the pool of good subjects has been expanding wide ever since the news of Miss Mardanova's success was spread. It's rather interesting. Are they just growing more confident so they're able to speak up? Have they only tested out their own abilities now? What is causing this boom?"

"We can't know, but Sir Dorey has certainly gotten a kick out of it."

Oliver smiled despite himself, phone balancing between his shoulder and ear as he held a tea cup in one hand and reached for his pen with the other.

"He would enjoy that, wouldn't he? I hope everyone is being responsible and focusing on the science rather than the show."

"You really don't trust them to follow your example without you here to enforce it, do you? Maybe you should come home."

"Maybe, if you're telling me my distrust is valid."

"They're doing alright, you don't need to come back. You should stay focused on making your official move out of the hotel."

"I was just writing down some notes about that. Don't worry, I'm not planning on letting Mr. Pratt keep paying the exorbitant fees here."

"Is that so?"

They kept speaking for the hour, and Martin was thankful.

* * *

 **"** **Would you care for some tea, Ms. Kitahara?"**

"Oh, no thank you, I'm quite fine," she assured, a large smile plastered over her face.

Mai placed the cup she had preemptively removed back into the cabinet and walked over to the couch.

"Let's start then. What are you here about today?"

"I'm here about my daughter. She's been really caught up in the psychic scene that's so popular these days, and she spends so much time in her room trying to move toys and such around. It's getting tiring."

"Are things being thrown around too much?"

"Oh, no, she hasn't succeeded. Her father and I were just wishing she'd get over it."

"I'm sorry, but what was the matter you wanted us to investigate?"

Ms. Kitahara took this moment to lean over the coffee table and press her hands together, a pleading look on her face.

"I was hoping you could confirm that she doesn't have any psychic abilities."

"We research psychic phenomena thought to be caused by ghosts or spirits, not people. That doesn't fall under our services offered, not that I'd even know how we could prove a negative."

"Well, you could just tell her you did, right? She won't listen to us, but I'm sure she'd take 'Shibuya Psychic Research' seriously."

"I'm sorry ma'am, but we can't."

"Can I speak to your manager?"

"I don't think that's-"

"I want to speak to them."

"Y-yes, ma'am!"

 _Really, what is this woman thinking? She is certainly in for a rude awakening when Naru hears her idea. Yes, tell her off in my place. Show her that infamous cold attitude of yours._

Mai knocked on the office door and informed Oliver he was wanted, so he shuffled on out, book not leaving his hand. Ms. Kitahara gave them the usual "-so young, are you really the manager of this place?" before a look of recognition settled in, followed by one more quizzical.

She spoke again, "You're one of those psychics, right? One of the big name kids all popular on those video sites?"

"I don't know what you're talking about, and if I did it would be none of your concern. What were you here today to discuss?"

"No, you are. I recognise your face. My daughter's an avid fan. You're Oliver Davis, right?"

Mai recoiled, but her boss managed to remain more calm.

"My name is Kazuya Shibuya, that's what you should address me as. If you don't want to talk about the business that brought you here then you can leave."

"Your employee says you're uninterested in psychics, but you are one. Please, just tell my daughter-"

"My employee is right. We don't do research on human subjects. No one here will be telling your daughter anything."

"Your business is a fraud."

"You're welcome to think that if you want, but I'd invite you to think it outside our office doors."

She scrambled for her purse, whispering swears and angry words as she did in fact leave the office.

"Ah, well that's a relief."

"Mai, don't call me out here for people like that."

"Eh, but she wouldn't listen to me. I had to!"

With a sigh, Oliver returned to the privacy of his office.

It wasn't the first time someone had recognised him, so Mai didn't say anything this time, but she was concerned. She still recalled what Lin had said last summer in the cabins, about how his face being out there could be dangerous with Gene's killer still loose. She clutched a part of her shirt and glanced back at his office door.

 _Be safe._

* * *

In the capital city of Baku of the Republic of Azerbaijan, Nona Mardanova tried to get some rest. She hadn't been given any opportunity recently, pulled in front of every camera, asked to repeat her actions from the experiment, lift another plastic ball, do something new. All eyes were on her. Oliver Davis had been right; she was the catalyst, and she was an icon now. Her English was decent enough to get her though most interviews, even if previously she didn't believe she had the strength or patience. She was a sort of national hero, helping lead their country as it made such a scientific breakthrough before any other. More than she was anything, though, she was tired. Since the conference in Russia, she'd been in the spotlight, and ever more so with each passing day. She'd been touring Europe up until yesterday, when they'd finally returned to the Republic. She was only a nineteen year old girl, and she was carrying the weight of the world on her shoulders now. It felt like everything was her responsibility, but nothing was truly in her control. In fact, things were just beginning to spin out from anyone's reach.


	4. Chapter 3

By late February, Oliver had accepted his situation as reality just as the general public had accepted the cause of that initial plastic ball's movement. It was tiresome, but it was survivable, having his face known. Fortunately, his wardrobe still managed to deter a large portion of the people who recognized him in the street, and most others would leave him alone when he didn't acknowledge his name being called. Unfortunately, those who tended to be insensitive to his mourning wear and insistent upon getting his attention were mostly energetic children and teens, who were both overexcited and impolite. Going viral was not for Oliver, at a time where psychic abilities were in the mainstream on top of everything, surrounding him with followers of all kinds instead of just the old quiet subculture nerds. He had thought Mai loud, found his brother irritating, but they were nothing in comparison to his new "fans."

Still living out of the hotel, he glanced over the newspaper they had delivered daily. At Madoka's suggestion, he was learning to read Japanese; it was one condition for his return here, along with Lin's continued companionship and his apartment search. He was learning slowly, but enough to make out that the headlining story was about a serial criminal. He had seen something on the morning news as well, about an unknown killer and his latest victim. It seemed overshadowed by all the pop culture news, however. All people cared about these days was the latest trend. It just so happened to be PK this week. Naru scoffed, folded the paper, and made his way to the suntan room for his daily exercise.

* * *

Mai was on winter break and spending most of her time in the office, but today Ayako had offered to take her and Masako out for lunch, so she was instead heading to the restaurant they were supposed to meet at. It was supposed to be rather nice, so she had put a little more thought than usual into her outfit. However, she thought, Ayako and Masako both probably had much fancier clothing than she did, so she felt a bit embarrassed. She was, in fact, wearing Ayako's hand-me-downs. It had been a while since she'd bought any clothes herself, but she was planning to do some shopping with the extra income she'd have accumulated over this break. While she appreciated Ayako's kindness, it was satisfying to achieve something by one's self too.

The restaurant was a small building Mai had never noticed before, despite walking down this street often. It had glass windows all across the front wall, but there were curtains inside, blocking the interior from view. There wasn't even a sign outside with the hours of operation, leaving the place a mystery aside from its name, "Aureo", a word Mai was unfamiliar with. While she was distracted trying to get a peek inside, there was a tap at her shoulder. She nearly jumped, startled, and turned her head.

"Ah, Masako, you scared me."

"Were you not expecting me, even though we were meeting up here?"

"Eh, no, I mean, nevermind. Where's Ayako?"

"I don't know. Matsuzaki is not all that reliable, I worry she might not show up."

"Ayako wouldn't leave us all alone like that. Besides, she insisted that she really likes this restaurant. I'm sure she'll at least be coming for the food."

"Possibly."

"Well, we can sit on a bench and wait for her."

There ended up being no need, as Ayako was just arriving with a loud "Hello ladies~!"

She was wearing a deep red turtleneck dress, and black ankle boots with gold embellishments. Her makeup seemed too perfect to have been done by even the steadiest hand. She was, as always, flashy, but stunning.

"Ready to eat?"

"We wondered if you were going to ever show up."

"Masako! We just got here too!"

"Hey hey hey, be nice to the gal who's paying for your meal. It's the least you can do."

"I could have paid for my own meal."

"Yeah, but I couldn't have, so let's just thank Ayako and go eat, okay?"

"...Fine."

"You really don't know how to accept others' kindness, do you, Masako?"

Ayako's remark was met with a "hmph!"

"Anyway, I hope you girls like Italian!"

"Oh, is that what this place is…"

Mai was still curious about the inside but with enough patience she'd get there, so she didn't say anymore. Ayako went forward and pushed the door open, leading the girls inside.

* * *

The fans were actually not the worst part of Oliver's new fame and popularity. They were only the gateway to the worst. It happened like this: One stepped into the office for a consultation, recognized the boss, and mentioned it to a friend. That friend mentioned it to another, who mentioned it to another, and eventually the information found itself online, public and searchable to anyone who might be looking for the great Dr. Davis.

It was the letters that now arrived at the office that had a real effect on him. After two years in this country of not having to touch a single envelope sent by a heartbroken family member of the missing, they'd found him again. He followed the same procedure as usual, and sent each one back unopened. Back home, it was routine, and he did it with no trouble, both before and after Japan. Here and now, however, it was different. He fumbled handling the letters, and let his hands linger on them too long. He found himself considering opening one, considering _looking._ He had to remind himself of all the reasons he had chosen to make it habit not to, had to remind himself that " _their suffering is not your responsibility."_ Oliver sighed at his desk, a pile of mail sitting in the corner, letter-opener still curled up inside his fist. He grabbed the first envelope at the top and examined it. The address of the office was written on the front in numbers and sloppy Japanese, with Oliver Davis and Shibuya Psychic Research in plain English at the bottom. The return address in the corner was French. Assuming the individual French as well, and that the letter itself was in English, this person had gone through a lot of trouble to make sure he was able to receive and read it. To simply return it was…

Metal hit wood, and the letter-opener was back inside a drawer being closed. In seconds, the letter was back on top of the pile, and all of them were being slipped into a larger brown envelope for carrying, which was then pushed aside for later. It was okay. He'd handle this the same way as always.

* * *

Each of the girls had chosen a unique pasta dish off of the menu, and they were now chatting while waiting for their food to arrive.

"A date introduced me to this restaurant, actually. He turned out to not have a lot of money, but great taste in eateries."

"Is that really all you're concerned about," Mai asked. "Really?"

"Do you like spending time with men for free? I don't."

Ayako immediately stuffed a breadstick in her mouth and the younger girls with her both sighed in turn.

"It's just," she continued while chewing. "You girls are still in high school, you're still teenagers, you still believe in love. I'm old now, too old to chase that fantasy. If I'm going to go after anything, might as well be something solid and useful, like cash, or jewelry, maybe a new car."

"I thought you were still a young woman."

Ayako swallowed.

"That Monk is older than me and yet he makes fun of me for my age. Does that make sense to you? And I _am_ still young. I'm not even 25 yet, but I've lived a long life, it feels. I've had plenty of experience, got plenty of knowledge."

Masako and Mai shared an amused look and a giggle before Ayako changed the subject.

"You know, John is a hilarious drunk."

"Oh?"

Both girls raised an eyebrow.

"You'd never expect that from him, would you? But he's a mess when intoxicated. You'd expect that from Takigawa, but he's much tamer."

"And how exactly did you discover this?" Masako inquired.

"I can't even imagine John drinking," added Mai.

"Hard, right? Anyway, we're drinking buddies, the three of us. Now, this happened just last week, you're going to love this story."

Ayako's tale kept the girls entertained until their food arrived, and then the food kept their talking to a minimum. When they were mostly finished, Ayako caught Mai staring into her bowl, unfocused.

"Hey, Mai, what's up?"

She didn't answer, so Masako tapped her arm.

"Mai, hey."

"Oh! Sorry. I was just thinking about, this whole thing around PK now. You remember Kuroda, right? She's really popular again now. We're in the same class this year. You know how Naru said she probably had latent psychokinesis abilities? Apparently everything happening recently inspired her to learn how to control them. It's weird. Even though we all met at my school first, it felt like I was in a different world with SPR than when I was at school or with friends. Now they've gotten mushed together. Keiko and Michiru never asked me about PK before, not that I have a lot to say about it. I only know the basics that I've picked up on cases, after all, but it's… weird. I mean, no one's talking about ghosts at least, so that's still unique to this part of my life, but it feels like it's all coming together."

"Yeah, I get that. Is that bad though?"

"Not bad, per se, just, odd."

"Hmm, yeah, that's fair. Do either of you girls feel like dessert?"

Mai and Masako looked at each other and shrugged.

"Fine, well, I do, so we're getting dessert. I'll treat you children to some sweets!"

* * *

As of late, Tokyo's special investigation team, the Zero Unit, had been stuck dealing almost entirely with pranks. It was tiring, humiliating even, for its members. Figuring out how some irresponsible teens managed to complete their latest scheme felt like lower work, for lower individuals to take care of. Seigi Hirota was sitting at his desk, eyes scanning over a file with contempt when his partner hopped up to sit beside it.

"Hey."

Saki Nakai slid over and tilted her head down to meet his eyes.

"What's the verdict?"

Hirota sighed.

"Kids are awful, but creative."

"Did you just figure that out? I've known all week."

"Whatever kid did this is especially awful and creative, though."

"Oh, really?"

Nakai was just starting to look over the file herself when the door opened and a familiar face walked through, a young prosecutor who usually handled major crimes. His presence in the office was usually to deliver the news when they were being handed over a case, so everyone in the room had their eyes locked on him, hopeful. There was some whispering in a room off to the side that no one could make out, and then both the man and their boss came out, looking a bit hesitant.

"Well, everyone, we've got a new job. Hirota and Nakai, I want you two to focus on it. It's from homicide."

The second named detective got a twinkle in her eye.

"Is it a mysterious locked room puzzle?"

"Nakai, this is something you need to hear directly from his mouth yourself. You too, Hirota."

Nakai frowned, and Hirota looked concerned.

"From, who?"

Their boss sighed and looked to the prosecutor who could only shrug.

"We're calling him 'Boy A.'"


End file.
